HELENA — Helena's Konnor Ralph has earned a spot on the US ski team.
He’s the first Queen City of the Rockies athlete to join the team since 1972 when Roger Little qualified.
Ralph began skiing as a child in Montana, frequenting his hometown ski hill, Great Divide, to hone his skills.
His family enrolled him in a ski school in Oregon after Ralph won a national ski competition in 2017.
Ralph continued to excel and now lives and works out of Park City Utah, training with fellow rookies under the US ski team.
Ralph credits the Helena community with the support he needs to keep going and chase his dreams.
“I have so much support because it's like a small community in Helena. And there’s so much support there that, I can't let them down, you know, like I have to do this,” says Ralph.
Ralph is on the freeski team. Freeski is alpine skiing with tricks, jumps, and terrain park obstacles.
With Olympic dreams on the horizon, Ralph and his family have set up a fundraiser in order to keep this dream alive.
As a rookie, Ralph isn’t entitled to payment under the US ski team. It’s only when an athlete goes pro that they begin to receive payment.
The money raised for Konnor will go towards necessary expenses in order to enhance his prospects of joining the pro team and one day going to the Olympics.
“So the fundraiser, it's there to help me pay for travel expenses and a few other things like coaching,” says Ralph about the fundraiser.
If you’d like to help Konnor Ralph, you can access the GoFundMe, US Freeski Team: Konnor’s Journey.
The fundraiser will consist of a silent auction, a live auction, and a 50/50 raffle with plenty of prizes.
It’s happening on Sunday, Nov. 7 at the Lewis and Clark Brewery.
